‘We have never seen anyone at this level in Donegal’: Patsy McGonagle on Mark English

Mark English smashed the Irish 800m record in the Netherlands on Monday evening with a performance described as the best ever by a Donegal athlete.

Patsy McGonagle, the former Irish Athletics Team Manager, says English is really now in world-class territory.

The Finn Valley AC athlete won the 800m at the FBK Games in Hengelo, shaving a further 0.42 seconds off his Irish record.

English, who had already secured his spot at the 2025 World Athletics Championships with his last record-breaking run in Poland, came with his customary swift finish to win in 1:43.92 and is the first Irish athlete to run a sub-1:44 800m.

“I always wanted to get a win and run 1:43 so I managed those two things,” English said afterwards. “It was really nice to see 1:43 on the clock.

“I stayed off the pace early. I felt really good at 600m. It’s a brilliant day. I thought I could win it with 80m left.”

The 32-year-old Letterkenny native, who won European Indoor bronze earlier this year, is in the form of his life - and he showed it again at the FBK Stadium in a World Athletics Continental Gold Tour meet. 

Over two laps, English - who opened out of lane 6 - finished strong and had 0.4 seconds to spare on France’s Yanis Meziane, who was second in 1:44.32 with Craig Peyton from Australia third in a similar time.

Ten days beforehand, English clocked 1:44.34 to win at the Irena Szewińska Memorial in Bydgoszcz., another gold level meet.

“Tokyo will be the litmus test this year, but his times have seriously got to encourage him and give him great confidence,” McGonagle said. 

“It is exceptional athletic running. We in Donegal have never seen anyone at this level - ever.

“He is the outstanding Donegal sports person at the moment. In a global sense, Mark is now in world-class territory with his performances.

“He has been running since he was nine years old at Woodlands National School and he has stayed in the game. It’s a real credit to him and he is producing performances year-in, year-out. It’s exceptional to have done that while also, by the way, qualifying as a doctor.”

English is showing the fruits of a new partnership with coach Justin Rinaldi and the Fast 8 Track Club and had opened his outdoor season with victory at the Track Fest meet in Los Angeles 1:44.75.

This will be a long season for athletes with the World Athletics Championships not taking place until mid-September in Tokyo.

Earlier in the year, the medical doctor - now a five-time European medallist - set a new Irish indoor 800m record of 1:45.15 while running at the Millrose Games in New York.

English will now compete at the Bislett Games, a Diamond League meeting, in Oslo on Thursday night.

He has hailed those closely involved with him behind the scenes following a five-week training camp at altitude in Flagstaff recently.

He said: “All these times and wins take a massive team behind me. I do want to thank everyone who helped me to get here. So many people helped me to achieve that today.”

English is a client of Pace Sports Management, the company headed up by Milford man and former Finn Valley AC athlete Ricky Simms.

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McGonagle said: “Ricky has played a key part for Mark, in addition to his other sponsors and those who assist. It’s great for us as a club at Finn Valley and indeed for Donegal athletics to be associated with an athlete of his calibre. 

“At Finn Valley, we have been running primary schools athletics since the 1970s and Mark is a product of that because his school, Woodlands, engaged and they continue to engage.”